


Heartbeat

by boneswrites



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode: 5x16, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt!Danny, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Major Spoilers, Overprotective!Steve, So much angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-01
Updated: 2015-07-01
Packaged: 2018-04-07 05:39:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4251492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boneswrites/pseuds/boneswrites
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>WARNING: Major spoilers for 5x16. </p><p>A near-death experience finally knocks some sense into Steve and Danny's stubborn heads. Tears are shed, hands are held, and confessions are told.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Heartbeat

Steve was racing like a mad man in the streets of Oahu. Why a mad man you ask? Only that Amber’s (aka Melissa, they learned) abusive husband is in town clearly tracking Danny and Amber down, and to top it all, both of their phones were switched off. He knew that the husband probably knew a whole hell of a lot more about Danny and Amber’s location than Five-0. That wasn’t the only reason, however, that Steve was this close to losing his mind. Danny isn’t only his best friend, he is so much more than that, and the idea of never telling Danny absolutely terrifies the living crap out of Steve.

Steve busted through the Five-0 headquarters glass doors and jogged over to Chin and Kono who were standing around the computer, worry coating their eyes. Steve’s stomach turned.

“Chin, tell me you’ve got something.” Steve asked desperately.

“Nothing, neither phone popped up so far.” Chin shook his head.

Steve sighed heavily and ran his hands over his face, trying to take deep breaths to calm down his racing heart. Any faster, and his heart might leap out of his chest.

“I should’ve asked where they were staying.” Steve’s voice was muffled.

“Steve, you could’ve never known.” Kono tried.

“We have no idea what’s going on right now, they might be—“

“Don’t go there,” Chin cut Steve. “We’ll find them.”

“He might have told Grace where they were going.” Steve eyes lit, he dug his hand in his pocket and grabbed his phone, but before he got the chance to dial Grace’s number, the computer binged.

“Danny’s phone just came online!” Chin yelled and starting running a trace to get their location.

“Trace it!” Steve’s heart picked up speed once again. _You better be okay, Danny, or I swear I will kill you myself,_ Steve thought.

“They’re up near Waimanalo!” Kono read the address off the computer screen before Steve rushed out of headquarters, Chin and Kono hot on his heels. They prayed they weren’t too late.

\---

It all happened so quickly. One second she was boiling water to make Danny’s favorite pasta for dinner, then the next there was a knife on her neck and a too-familiar-voice ordering her to turn around slowly. If she made a sound, she’ll be dead. It wasn’t until she turned around the faced the attacker that Amber’s heart nearly stopped beating. Her throat was suddenly as dry as the desert in midday, she tried to swallow the huge imaginary lump that was cutting off her airway with no success. She had no option but to comply with the instructions she was given. She would disappear until Danny would come looking for her.

A few minutes later, Danny, indeed, walked through the open window. Not seeing Amber around, he called out. “Babe? Whatever you’re cooking smells really good.” It didn’t take long for him to suspect that something was wrong. A few knives were scattered on the kitchen counter, the cut vegetables next to the stove were scattered all over the place, and the boiling water was this close to overflowing. Danny turned off the eye and before he had the chance to call out again, the attacker struck him on the head and he fell.

Now, nearly ten minutes later, after Danny attempted to pull off one of his infamous hero-stunts, the detective was lying on the ground, blood seeping through the stab wound in his abdomen. It wasn’t fatal, at least not right away. Danny grinned his teeth together as another hot wave of pain ran through his nerves. He tried to apply as much pressure as he could on his wound, but he was starting to go weak. He could stay awake for just so much time. The attacker—Frank, he heard Amber call him various times, was squeezing Amber into the corner. Wait, Amber knew this guy? Danny’s mind was starting to get fuzzy, his vision going blurry every now and then, a rough shake would usually clarify his surroundings, but not without consequence. Danny gathered just enough energy to try and grab this Frank guy’s attention, giving Amber the chance to run, or something.

“You son of a bitch, you talk to me. Leave her alone.” Danny gasped out. “You think you’ll get out of this one? You think you’ll walk out of here?” Danny heaved for a breath. “You’re wrong, you’ll pay for this.” As he wished, Frank made his way towards Danny and kneeled down next to the injured detective.

“No, no, you see, you’re wrong.” Frank pressed down on Danny’s stomach, making Danny’s face go red and causing more blood to seep through the open hole. “I know what you’re doing. You’re trying to make me think that someone is coming, when you and I both know very well that no one is. If one of us won’t make it out of here, it will be you, because you’ll be too busy being dead.” The smirk on Frank’s face raised the bile in Danny’s stomach to his throat. Something made him believe this guy, and Danny wasn’t easily shaken by threats. He was the one slowly bleeding out, after all. A punch to the lungs here, kicking the air out of Danny’s lungs, and few kicks to the ribs here, which would definitely bruise, and Danny was struggling to hold onto the light.

Amber took the chance of Danny’s distraction and she grabbed the first phone she found, which happened to be Danny’s, and switching it on. Frank grabbed it and smashed it on the ground before she was able to dial nine-one-one.

\---

“Chin, talk to me!” Steve said once he answered the incoming call.

“We just lost the trace on Danny’s phone!” Chin informed him.

“Damn it!” Steve swore. “We have to speed up!” Steve hung up and pressed down on the accelerator. Sweat was running down his forehead, and he no long felt his heart beating. He was not going to lose Danny today. All possible scenarios running through Steve’s mind ended with one outcome, and it made him hyperventilate.

\---

Frank grabbed Amber’s arm are a little too roughly before throwing her on the ground next to Danny. “Bitch!” He grabbed her hair. “Everything I did was for you, you ungrateful whore! And this, this is now you repay me?!” He slapped her across her face. The slap echoed, jolting Danny from the darkness.

“Leave her alone!” Danny tried. “You like hitting women, you asshole! I’m gonna kill you myself!” Danny swore.

“Yeah, right.” Frank huffed, turning his attention back to Amber.

“You have me, let him go. Let me call an ambulance and we’ll leave before it gets here, please. Just let him go!” Amber pleaded, tears streaming down her face.

“Am—Amber, no.” Danny whispered.

“I’m so sorry, Danny, this is all my fault.” She took the chance and crawled towards Danny, brushing her hand over his messy blond locks.

“Do—don’t apologize, you’ll get o—out of this.” Danny gave her a weak smile.

Frank watched them, carefully accessing the situation. After making up his mind, he yanked Amber up with her arm. “You’re coming with me.”

“We need to call an ambulance first!” Amber tried to escape his strong grip.

“We’ll call an ambulance when we get away from here.” Frank said, dragging Amber behind him.

“Danny!” Amber yelled out.

With his remaining energy, Danny looked up, fear radiating from his eyes, somewhere with all that terror, an apology. His head fell back, and his eyes rolled back in his head as the darkness took him.

Frank grabbed Danny’s gun from the holster and pulled Amber towards the front door. The moment the stepped foot on the first step, a truck closed off the parking space and out jumped Steve. He approached Frank and Amber with his gun in hand, Chin and Kono on either side of him.

“Five-0!” Steve announced. “Drop the gun and get down on your knees with your hands on your head. Don’t even think about it, there’s nowhere you can run.”

“Stay back or I’ll kill her!” Frank threated, putting the gun to Amber’s head, making her shriek with fear.

“You’ll be on the ground before you even think about pulling that trigger.” Steve warned.

Instead, Frank pointed the gun at the cops and before he could pull the trigger, bullets flew into his flesh as Amber covered her ears and ran towards Steve. Steve returned his gun to the holster and looked at Amber with terrified eyes. “Where’s Danny?”

“He—he’s in the back.” Amber was able to squeeze out. Steve was sprinting around the house in a heartbeat.

“Danny!” He yelled out. His breathing and heart both came to a sudden halt as Steve’s eyes landed on Danny. “No,” he breathed. “No, no, no.” For a second, Steve couldn’t move, it felt like his feet were nailed to the ground. Danny’s unresponsiveness sprawled the SEAL into action, as he leapt and kneeled down next to the shorter man. It took him a moment to register he was sitting in a pool of Danny’s blood. Steve’s first reflex was to apply pressure to the gapping wound, calling Danny’s name repeatedly. “Danny? Danny! Come on, Danny, give me anything buddy.” When Danny remained still as a statue, Steve gulped. “Chin!” He called out instead.

The Asian gasped when he saw Steve desperately trying to keep it together. Chin’s eyes wondered from Steve to Danny then back to Steve. He reached for his phone and dialed nine-one-one without having to be told.

Steve’s eyes never left Danny’s face, searching for any signs of life.

“Is he—?” Chin prompted.

Steve quickly checked for Danny’s pulse, his stomach lurching and his own heart threating to die on him when he felt a beat against his finger. “He’s alive! It’s slow, but it’s there.” One of Steve’s hands cupped the side of Danny’s face, smearing it with bright red blood. “Danno, it’s Steve, open your eyes.” Tears gathered in Steve’s eyes.

The smallest of groans escaped from Danny’s lips, it took him a few seconds before he was able to open his eyes halfway. Clearly, the effort exhausted him.

Steve was leaning over Danny by then. “Danno, there you are.” He breathed.

“Ste—ve?” Danny blinked rapidly.

“Yeah, Danno, I’m here. You’re gonna be fine, just stay with me.” Steve pleaded.

“Am—Amber?” Danny asked with worry in his small voice.

“She’s fine, don’t worry. We got here just in time.” Steve assured the detective.

Danny nodded as darkness threatened to take over once again.

“So—tired.” Danny whispered.

“I know, Danno, but you gotta stay awake babe, alright? Don’t go to sleep.”

“H—Hurts.” Danny breathed, his face crumbling as he grinned his teeth together, pain flaring through his nerves.

“You’re doing great, just a little longer.” Steve promised. He couldn’t stand seeing Danny in so much pain, and the feeling of helplessness wasn’t helping, either.

“Don’t le—leave me.” Danny begged.

“I’m not going anywhere.” Steve answered immediately, taking Danny’s hand in his own and giving it a light squeeze.

“Promise?”

“I promise, Danno.”

Danny’s eyes started to shut, but Steve quickly squeezed his hand in hopes of keeping him awake. “No, no, Danny, stay with me. Danny!” When Danny didn’t comply, Steve started praying to whichever God was listening to not take Danny away from him. “Damn it, Danny, don’t you dare die on me!” Steve yelled, a tear escaping from his eye and ran down his scruffy face.

Steve had always been scared to face Danny about his feelings. Hell, he was scared to even admit them to himself. Besides, what are the chances that Danny felt the same way? Yeah, that’s right, zero. Minus three, even. Not only has Danny never showed interest in Steve, or men in general, but he was in a relationship with Amber, and Gabby before her, and Rachel before all of them. See a man’s name? No. Steve wasn’t exactly hopeful about his chances with Danny, but clearly, burying his feelings didn’t have the outcome he wanted. Here he was, his pants soaked with Danny’s blood, holding tightly to the shorter man’s hand, fearing he’ll never see his eyes opened again, never have another argument with him again. Those thoughts shredded Steve’s heart into a million pieces, and he finally let the tears roll. He let himself go, not holding back anymore, unable to stay positive and strong anymore. So, he wept. He wept for his partner, his best friend, and for the love of his life. He rested his forehead against Danny’s bloodied shirt and let the salty tears fall, mixing with the sticky blood. At least, in some messed up, screwed up way, he and Danny were one now.

The ambulance arrived after what felt like an eternity, and Chin had to physically restrain Steve so he’d give the paramedics space to work. Steve weakly fought the grip of his friend, but failed to be freed. The crying had taken everything out of him.

After one of the paramedics checked Danny’s heart rate and blood pressure, he looked up at Steve and Chin. “He’s alive, Commander.” The paramedic then looked at his partner and started to assess Danny’s injuries. “We’ve got a stab wound to the abdomen, bruises on the left ribs and a collapse lung with major blood loss.”

“A collapsed lung?” Steve repeated with terror in his voice.

“Breathing is slow and shallow, we won’t have a clear airway for long, we’ll intubate on the way.” The paramedic continued, ignoring Steve.

Steve followed as the paramedics rolled Danny away and loaded him into the ambulance. The paramedic looked at the small group. “There’s only room for one.”

Steve hopped into the ambulance without so much as glancing at his friends. He’ll explain to Amber later, but right now, there are higher chances of shooting him than him leaving Danny’s side. Once the ambulance started moving and the paramedic was sitting at Danny’s head, Steve grabbed Danny’s hand, giving it the familiar squeeze. “I’m right here, Danno.” If the paramedic noticed anything about the way Steve was hollering over Danny, he didn’t comment.

“Starting intubation.” The paramedic—John, Steve could now read his nametag—announced.

“What are you doing?” Steve asked protectively.

John looked up for a split second before looking back at what he was doing. “This is basically a tube that we insert in the patient’s throat and into their lungs so we can do the breathing for them.”

“But I thought Danny was breathing on his own.” Steve’s worry was increasing.

“He is,” John confirmed, “however, his collapsed lung is causing strain on his other lung, and his throat is swollen, so if it shuts before the tube is through, the other procedure isn’t a pretty one.” He explained, connecting the end of the tube with an inflated air bag. “Watch his stats.” John pointed to the monitor in front of Steve and once Steve’s eyes were on it, John squeezed the air bag, sending fresh oxygen to Danny’s lung. After a few more squeezes, Danny’s stats were stabilizing. “He’s okay, Commander.”

Steve couldn’t find his voice, so he just nodded and held Danny’s hand tighter.

“Can he wake up?” Steve asked some minutes later.

“No,” John shook his head, “I had to sedate him so he doesn’t fight the intubation. If he fights it, he could injure his trachea, and there are high chances of him choking.” He explained, still squeezing the air bag every five seconds or so.

“How long do you keep doing this?” Steve pointed to the bag.

“For as long as needed. But there are machines that do the same thing, so it’s not always people. This is only if it’s temporary or in case of an emergency.”

“And which one is this?” Steve asked about the situation.

“Both.”

“So Danny’s not going to need it later?” Steve asked.

“Once they inflate his collapsed lung, I don’t believe he’ll need it anymore.” John assured Steve. “Does he have a family?”

“Uh, yeah, he goes.” Steve nodded. “He’s got a little girl, Grace. Best kid in the world.”

John smiled at that. “I’m sure he’ll be over the stars to see after this.”

“Yes, he will be.”  

Eight minutes later, they arrived at Tripler Army Medical Center with a trauma team waiting for them at the entrance. The amount of doctors swarming around Danny didn’t give Steve the chance to stay beside him, so he settled for trailing behind the racing gurney, trying to catch what the doctors were exchanging. Heart rate, blood pressure, stab wound, collapsed lung, breathing conditions, major blood loss. _Take him up and prep him for surgery stat! We don’t have a second to lose!_ Steve heard the lead doctor order.

“I’m Major Hunt, I’ll be operating on Detective Williams. Can you tell me if he has any allergies to any medication?”

“No, no, not that I know of.” Steve answered. “Is he gonna be okay?”

Major Hunt sighed. “He’s strong, and healthy and he’s held on this long. I won’t know the extent of the damage until I get in there, but I promise you, we will do everything we can.” He gave Steve’s shoulder a light squeeze. “I’ll come find you when I’m done.” He promised, and with that, Steve watched as the Major jogged towards the elevator and got in. Danny’s life is out of his hands now.

\---

Steve was leaning against a wall when he heard his name being called. He slowly looked up, and saw Chin racing towards him.

“He’s in surgery.” Steve whispered.

Chin nodded.

“They uh, they said he lost a lot of blood and they stuck a fucking tube down his throat to help him breathe and—“ Steve sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

“Hey, hey, Steve, _you_ need to breathe.” Chin placed his hand on Steve’s shoulder.

“Oh God, Chin, what if—what if he doesn’t make it?” Steve’s voice broke, his knees threatened to give out on him at the thought, but luckily, Chin was there to hold him up.

“Whoa, whoa, lets sit down, shall we.” Chin helped Steve to a nearby chair, setting the commander down slowly. Chin kneeled down, supported himself on his toes and looked straight into Steve’s eyes. “Danny will make it. You and I both know how stubborn he is, and this is not the way he’s going out, all right? You have to believe that. He’s made it this far. He’s not done, Steve. He’s still got so much to do. Watch Grace grow up, graduate high school, gradate college, get married. Hold his grandchildren. Grow old with you.”

Steve’s eyes widened. He swallowed around the lump in his throat and spoke. “W—What?”

“Come on, brah, you know what I’m talking about. You two are driving us mad.” Chin gave Steve a small smile.

“Danny and…me?” Steve asked with astonishment.

“Are you really that blind, boss? Yes, you and Danny. Everyone knows how you two feel about each other, except well, lets see, you two.”

“I—I had no idea he felt the same way.” Steve said slowly, his brain going in a million different directions.

“Have you seen the way he looks at you? He looks at you like you’re the universe. And you are his universe.”

That just made more tears gather in Steve’s eyes. He buried his face in his hands and let a few tears fall. He wiped them away with his hand, and scratched his scruffy face. “I’m an idiot.” He admitted. “I didn’t see it. What if he was giving me hints, but I was so focused on trying to convince myself that I don’t have feelings for him that they just flew right over my head? What if I let him down? I’ll never forgive myself if—I need him to know. Fuck, Chin, I messed up. I fucking messed up.”

“You’re freaking out again, Steve. Calm down. You’ll get the chance to talk it through with him, all right? You’ll figure it out together.”

“What if he hates me by now?”

“Danny doesn’t hate you, Steve. And I’m pretty sure he never will.”

“Why is it taking so long?” Steve glanced at his watch. “They’ve been in there forever. What if something went wrong?”

“If something went wrong they’ll come tell us. As long as no one is here, it means that everything is okay and they’re working on Danny.”

Chin has never seen Steve this rattled before. This Steve is nothing like the well-composed SEAL he knows. But yet again, Danny is currently undergoing surgery. Odds are, Steve was going to lose it. And oh boy, did he lose it.

\---

“Where’s Amber?” Steve looked at Chin once he remembered the woman.

“Headquarters with Kono. She’s was in shock, but she’s okay now. Worried about Danny.” Chin answered. “Was it her?” He looked at Steve, after staying silent for some moments.

Steve looked at Chin with confusion.

“Why you never told Danny how you felt.” Chin clarified.

Steve sighed and opened his mouth. “It’s not just her, it’s everything. When I realized I had feelings for Danny, it terrified me. I never felt that way towards any man before, I didn’t even feel the same way towards Cath. I thought that I was in love with Catherine, but then I realized how I felt about Danny. She was gone for months at a time when she was on duty in the Navy, and I was coping. But when Danny went back to Jersey for one week, I couldn’t stand it. I just can’t imagine my life without him.” Steve didn’t even want to begin imagining his life without Danny. It wouldn’t be a life worth living. “And he just looked happy with Amber. Well, as happy as Danny Williams can look.” Steve smiled a little. “And he means everything to me, so I thought that this…thing wasn’t worth losing Danny. Even if I had to live with us being just friends, it was enough.”

“It can be so much more, Steve.” Chin told his boss.

“How can you be so sure?” Steve wondered. “I haven’t noticed anything.”

“Maybe because you didn’t _want_ to see anything.” Chin pointed out. “I see how he looks at you when you aren’t looking. The way a small smile climbs on his lips, as if he would be imagining his life with you. I also see a hint of sadness or even disappointment whenever you brought up Catherine. He was happy for you, of course, but I could sense there was something more. He never leaves you side, Steve. He asks you to hang out with him and Grace. He’s let you into his life in every possible way, and wants to share with you.”

“Why hasn’t he said anything?” Steve ran his hand over his face. He was tired.

“Perhaps because he thought you didn’t feel the same way.”

“This is so messed up and tangled.” Steve sighed.

“Untangle it then.” Chin encouraged the SEAL, giving him a small nudge when he saw Major Hunt making his way towards them.

Steve was on his feet in a heartbeat, Major Hunt’s neutral expression made him sick.

“How is he?” Steve managed to slowly, instead of babble. He hoped he could hear the doctor’s words over the sound of his heart beating in his ears.

“He’s stable.” Hunt started. “We were able to control the internal bleeding caused by the stabbing, however it was more extensive than we first predicted, he was touch and go in the beginning. We stabilized him and inflated his collapsed lung. It’s still a little weak, but by time it will be back to normal. As for the bruises on his ribs, he’s going to be in some pain whenever he breathes or moves, but they’ll heal and there shouldn’t be any problems.” Hunt assured the anxious cops.

“What about the tube?” Steve asked in a small voice, trying to swallow everything the doctor threw at them.

“He’s still intubated, we can’t remove the tube until he’s conscious or we might risk injuring his trachea.” The doctor explained.

“When can we see him?”

“In a bit.” Hunt nodded. “They’re settling him in recovery right now. He can have one visitor at a time until he’s moved to a room.”

“When can I take him home?”

“It’s early to say.” The Major took off his army printed scrub cap and held it in his hand. “He’s going to be under strict supervision for twenty-four hours. We need to monitor his vitals and keep an eye out for any complications that might occur until he’s out of the woods.”

“That means I can’t stay with his tonight?” Steve frowned.

“It’s going to be busy, I have to warn you. Nurses will be checking on him hourly so it might be a little noisy for you. I’d suggest you go home and I’ll call if anything changes, but from the look of it, even if I dry my throat, you’ll end up staying either way.” Hunt chuckled.

A small smile crept on Steve’s mouth.

“Save your breath, doc.” Chin chuckled.

“Noted.” Hunt nodded. “I’ll come find you when he’s settling and everything is smooth.”

“I’ll head back to headquarters, check on Amber and update the girls.” Chin said once Hunt disappeared.

“You don’t want to see Danny?”

“He’s got you.”

\---

Fifteen minutes later, Hunt found Steve in the same spot he left him.

“Where’s your friend?” The doctor asked.

“He left to update our friends, and check on one of them. Danny wasn’t the only one who got attacked.” Steve said.

“Are they all right?” Hunt frowned.

“She’s fine, she was just in shock.” Steve clarified.

Hunt nodded. “Let me take you to see Danny, huh?”

“Please.” Steve hurriedly followed Hunt. They passed a few rooms before coming to a stop in front of what Steve assumed was Danny’s room.

“You’ve already seen him with the tube, but there are a lot of wires attached to his body, and the tube is connected to the respirator, the machines are monitoring his vitals. It might not look like it, but he’s doing well, okay?” Hunt prepared Steve.

Steve licked his dry lips and nodded. After the doctor gave him the go ahead, Steve held the door knob a little too tightly, his knuckles going white for a few seconds, then he pushed the door and walked in.

Steve’s body refused to move. He stared at Danny’s form in the hospital bed. The hospital bed that was far too big for the detective. Or Danny somehow got smaller, Steve didn’t know. Danny’s face was as pale as the sheets he was sleeping on. No, wait, this wasn’t the Danny Steve knows. The Danny who was always looking for something to argue about, the one whose eyes lit up when Grace was mentioned or the one whose hands flew over the place when he was making a point. This wasn’t that Danny. This was the ghost of Danny. The machines beeping in the background were slowly starting to annoy Steve, he just wanted to rip the wires off and take ‘Danny’ into his arms. Water filled the SEAL’s eyes, he struggled to keep them at bay.

“I know it’s too much to take in, but he really is doing well.” Hunt’s hushed voice filled the room.

Steve finally found it in him to move towards the bed and stood next to it. He motioned to the unmoving hand.

“Can I—?” Steve looked at Hunt.

Giving him a small smile, the Major nodded.

Steve closed his hand over the still one on the bed. It was warm. Okay, so maybe this was Danny. Beaten and bruised Danny, but it was Danny. Steve’s heart warmed at the thought. A pulse ox monitor was attached to the index finger on the hand that was currently in Steve’s tight grip. There was an IV feeding Danny antibiotics attached to his other arm. Steve watched at the shorter man’s chest rose and fell with each breath, the respirator on Danny’s left side inflating and deflating. _This is the machine John told me about,_ Steve recalled.

“You doing all right?” Hunt asked, watching Steve closely.

“Yeah,” Steve rasped out. “It’s uh, it’s hard seeing him like this when I’m used to him running around, you know. And that mouth of his that just won’t stop running.” Steve smiled, running his thumb over Danny’s hand. It was soft.

“You can use the peace until his mouth is running again.” Hunt smiled at Steve. “You can sit down.” He pointed to the chair behind Steve.

Steve hadn’t even noticed it. He nodded and fell back into the chair, his hand still connected with Danny. He moved the chair forward so he’d be able to both hold Danny’s hand and rest his back against the chair comfortably. “Thank you so much for everything, Major.” Steve said with all his heart.

“It’s my pleasure, and please, call me Owen.”

“Good to meet you, Owen. I’m Steve.“ Steve introduced himself.

“There’s a nurse’s station close by if you need anything, and some venting machines nearby. I don’t recommend the cafeteria, but there’s a small diner across the street if you want to grab anything when he’s asleep.” Owen suggested.

“Maybe later, I’m right where I belong.” Steve promised.

“All right,” Owen chuckled, “I’ll pass by in a few hours to check on him.”

Steve stood up and leaned over Danny’s body, his eyes not leaving Danny’s face. He closed his eyes and imagined Danny’s eyes opened, and the gorgeous blue irises staring back at him with a genuine smile decorating Danny’s face. Disappointment settled in his stomach when Steve opened his eyes and Danny’s face was still pale and his eyes were still closed. Steve then settled for simply running his hand through Danny’s mess of hair. The thick blond locks were all over the place, sticking out at odd angles. Steve used his fingers to bring them into some kind of order. With the amount of hair product that Danny’s hair swims in, Steve knew the detective wouldn’t be pleased about his current hair situation. Steve smiled at the thought of Danny defending his hair products. _The humidity fucks up my hair, Steven, just let it go,_ he would imagine Danny arguing. Steve couldn’t wait until Danny woke up. Couldn’t wait to hear that voice again.

\---

As promised, Owen walked into Danny’s room three hours later to check on him. “You still here, Steve?” Owen joked.

“Yeah,” Steve smiled, sitting up in his chair.

“The machines disturbing you?” Owen grab Danny’s chart from the end of the bed and started recording his vitals.

“Not really, I got used to it. It’s quite calming, actually. They say Danny is alive. How’s he doing?”

“Good,” Owen assured Steve. “I see you’ve already met Julie.” Owen noticed there were vitals already recorded by a nurse.

“She tried to get me up to get coffee. She said I needed it.”

“I stand by her.” Owen chuckled.

“I already had coffee. She was kind enough to fetch me a cup.” Steve said.

“You look like this when you’ve already had a cup? Wow.” Owen teased.

“You’re a funny guy, Owen.” Steve chuckled.

“I try.” Owen shrugged.

“Can I ask you a personal question?” Steve asked seriously.

“Shoot.” Owen returned the chart to its place, and slid the pen into his coat’s front pocket.

“Did you serve? In the Army? I couldn’t help noticing the scrub cap earlier.” Steve scratched the back of his neck nervously.

“I did, actually.” Owen nodded. “Three tours, Iraq. It was rough, seeing soldiers like that. You never get over it.”

“I know the feeling.”

“You do?” Owen’s eyebrows creased.

“Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, Navy SEAL, served for six years, four in Afghanistan, and then transferred to the Naval Intelligence Corps for five years.” Steve said proudly.

“Wow, that’s quite a resume. It’s impressive.” Owen’s eyes went wide with happiness. “It’s not every day we get a SEAL here.”

“Are you kidding me? We’re quite the frequent fliers here.” Steve joked.

“Why’s that?” Owen wondered.

“I’m the leader of the Five-0 task force, and Danny here is my partner.”

“I heard about you guys. You have a real impact.”

“We’re happy to do it.”

“Danny will be back doing it in no time.” Owen promised.

Steve smiled.

\---

Less than an hour later, Steve was starting to drift off to sleep, his eyes slowly closing when the sudden spike of Danny’s heart rate caused the machine to blare loudly, shaking the sleep out of Steve’s body. He was jolted to his feet and leaned over Danny, trying to figure out what’s wrong and watched as Danny’s eyes fluttered open.

“Danny, Danny, it’s Steve, calm down. You’re alright, I’m right here.” Steve pressed Danny’s shaking body into the bed so he doesn’t hurt himself.

Danny’s eyes roamed around the room hysterically, not focusing on anything. There was a burning sensation in his lungs, not to mention his ribs hurt like a son of a bitch. He tried to speak, but his chest started to heave heavily.

The colored drained from Steve’s face when Danny started jerking roughly against his arms, he was clearly having difficulty breathing. His blood pressure was shooting through the roof.

“Danny—“ Steve’s voice broke, and Julie, the nurse, rushed into the room. “What’s going on?!” Steve demanded.

Julie quickly grabbed a syringe and pushed the liquid into Danny’s IV port, thirty seconds later, Danny’s eyes shuttered close and his body stopped moving, and his stats dropping back to normal.

“What did you give him?” Steve panted, straightening his back.

“I gave him a temporary sedative. He was waking up and started to fight the intubation. It’s not an uncommon response. They’re usually scared and the feeling of the tube causes them to panic. He’ll come around in twenty minutes, I should go page Doctor Hunt.” Julie explained and then left to call Owen.

\---

Surely enough, twenty-two minutes later, Danny’s eyes slowly opened. The panic was starting to set in once again but Owen got in Danny’s face.

“Hey, Danny, hey, look at me.” Owen moved his face along with Danny’s movements. “You’re safe, you’re alright. I need you to calm down, okay? Don’t try breathing, the machine is already doing that for you.” Owen instructed.

Danny locked eyes with the doctor and tried to comply. He was desperate for some answers.

“Here, a familiar face might help you relax.” Owen suggested, getting out of Danny’s face and was replaced by Steve.

The SEAL smiled down at Danny. “Hey, Danno. Welcome back.” He could see Danny’s face starting to relax. “Yeah, that’s it, buddy, relax. You’re alright.” Danny squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, and opened them. A tear rolled down the side of his face. Steve quickly used his thumb to wipe the lone tear. “I got you, Danno, I got you.”

“Now that you’re not trying to punch any of us,” Owen walked back into the picture, “lets get you sitting up and get that tube out, what do you say?”

Danny nodded.

Once Danny was sitting up straight with a blue cloth spread across his chest, Owen grabbed a small syringe and started to explain the procedure he was about to do to Steve and Danny. “This is saline, I’m going to push it around the tube and it’s going to run down your trachea, if we try pulling it out without the saline, the tube might scratch your trachea, so this will make the removal smooth. Once that’s done, I’m going to turn off the respirator and then you can breathe normally. I’m going to count from one to three, then you’ll take a deep breath and cough as hard as you can while I pull out tube.” Owen instructed. “Ready?”

Danny nodded, feeling Steve’s steady hand on his shoulder.

Owen pushed the saline, and turned off the respirator. Danny took a few short jagged breaths before Owen started to count. “One, two, three, deep breath, and cough.” Owen began pulling out the plastic tube, and Danny felt like he was choking. “Almost there, Danny.” Owen assured his patient.

As soon as the tube was out, Danny went into a harsh coughing fit. Danny felt like he was going to gag. Danny grabbed the bed sheet into his fist, Steve’s hand immediately landed on top of his and Danny opened his hand, allowing Steve’s fingers to slip into his palm. Danny squeezed Steve’s hand tightly, as Steve ran his other hand up and down Danny’s back.

“That’s it, get it out to your system, that’s it, Danno.” Steve comforted his partner.

A minute or so passed until Danny was able to stop the heaving and take a deep breath before wiping the tears sitting on his cheeks.

“That wasn’t pleasant.” Danny chocked out quietly. “Water.”

“No, it didn’t look like it.” Steve teased as Julie handed Danny a cup of water. Steve watched as Danny sipped water slowly. “Slowly, Danno. Water isn’t going anywhere.”

“Shut up.” Danny whined.

“And he’s back, ladies and gentlemen. The infamous Detective Danny Williams.” Steve laughed at the face Danny gave you. “Good to have you back, Danno.”

“That’s true.” Owen agreed with a smile.

\---

“How are you feeling?” Steve asked fifteen minutes later when Owen and Julie left after replacing the respirator with a nasal cannula. Danny still needed the extra oxygen, giving his lung a chance to heal. Steve was sitting on the edge of his chair, his and Danny’s hands still intertwined.

“Like I was run over by a truck. Everything hurts.” Danny groaned.

“The painkillers will kick in any moment now.”

Danny glanced down at their hands, he marveled and how perfectly they fit. Right where his hand belongs.

Feeling a sudden surge of insecurity, Steve pulled his hand, breaking the bond, and—wait, is that disappointment he saw in Danny’s eyes? Without thinking, Steve extended his hand once again. He dared to hope.

Danny interlaced his fingers around Steve’s hand and watched Steve do the same. A smile crept on Danny’s cracked lips.

“Danny…” Steve breathed.

“I was scared, so scared.” Danny swallowed, his throat going dry. He’d held this at bay for far too long. He’s going to tell Steve.

“You scared the living fuck out of me.” Steve tightened his fingers around Danny’s. Steve inhaled deeply when Danny looked up with tears in his eyes. “Oh, Danno.”

“I thought I was going to die. Right then, I knew it. I knew I’d never see Grave again, never see you again.” He stopped to lick his lips (Steve’s eyes following the action, of course) and continued, “I thought I’d never get the chance to tell you.”

“Tell me what?” Steve whispered.

“How I feel.” Danny swallowed. “I always put it off. I always said there’s going to be a tomorrow, I’m gonna see you and I’m going to tell you. And I’m an idiot, I am, I’ve been putting this off for way too long and if today is any indication, it’s that life can be taken away at any moment, and I don’t want to spend another moment without you.” He blinked, sending a tear down his cheek.

Steve reached out and wiped the tear with his thumb, cupping Danny’s face for a few seconds, before letting his hand fall to Danny’s neck.

“And I don’t give a fuck anymore that these feelings scare me. I’m done running away, I can’t live without you knowing.”

It was Steve’s turn to have water in his eyes. For the first time in his life, he was truly speechless.

“Steve? Say something, you’re scaring me.” Danny prompted, squeezing Steve’s hand, brining him back to reality.

“I—I don’t know what to say.” Steve spoke. “I’ve imagined this conversation so many times, and I was not expecting you to say all that.”

“Really?”

Steve nodded. “I was scared to admit it because I thought you didn’t feel the same way, and I thought it was better to live the torture of having you only as a friend, rather than lose you completely. I wouldn’t have recovered if that happened. I’ve lost a lot of people in my life, but losing you would have broken me. And you’re not the only idiot, I was running away, too. But then I saw you lying on the ground, and the blood and we weren’t moving—“ Steve’s voice broke. “I…I tried to imagine my life without but it wasn’t one worth living.” Tears ran down Steve’s cheek, making Danny’s tears spill down, as well. “I wasn’t really expecting to do this in the hospital right after you almost died.” Steve chuckled through his tears.

“But we’re doing it.” Danny sniffed. “All the women were just ways of trying to cope.” Danny had mysteriously read Steve’s mind. “I always thought about you, and I was trying to use them to fill the hole of my need for you, but they couldn’t. I mean, Rachel was real, but that turned out how it turned out. I rushed into the relationship with Gabby because I had realized how I felt about you, and I was scared I had to do something. So I took the easy way out, and I’m a jerk. It didn’t really help, either.” Danny admitted and started to play with Steve’s hand and fingers.

Danny’s fingers running over his hand and fingers made Steve smile. “No more running.”

“No more running.” Danny repeated.

“You know, I thought I was in love with Cath, but then I realized how I felt about you, and then I realized with you, it was so much more. I can live without Catherine, but I can’t live without you.” Using his hand, Steve pulled Danny closer, and rested their foreheads against each other. He closed his eyes. “I thought I lost you.” He whispered.

“You’ll never lose me.” Danny promised.

Steve swallowed and moved closer to Danny. He guided Danny’s head towards his own left shoulder and held it in place.

Danny wrapped his arms tightly around Steve’s body, crumbling the SEAL’s shirt in his fist. Steve’s heartbeat rang against Danny’s ear, making him smile. “Your heartbeat.”

“It’s all yours, babe.” Steve ran his hand through Danny’s bed-ridden hair.

“I’m lucky.” Danny pulled away and connected their foreheads once again. A few moments after staring into Steve’s brown eyes, the feeling that finally, everything will be all right. Things will be better, even. This is his ultimate ticket to happiness.

“I’m grateful.” Steve whispered, his lips inches away from Danny’s. He took a quick glance at his partner’s lips and went in.

The feel of Steve’s lips against Danny’s chapped ones was above and beyond. It felt exactly like Steve had always imagined it. Granted, he never thought it would happen in a hospital recovery room—maybe on the beach or in front of the television—but point is, it’s happening and Steve’s heart was beating at the speed of a million miles an hour. Steve’s hands moved to bracket Danny’s face, his thumbs running softly over the detective’s still-pale cheeks.

Danny opened his lips, allowing Steve to slip in. He savored the taste of Steve on his own tongue. He tasted like coffee, only coffee, but he also tasted like Steve. Danny’s hands found the back of Steve shirt, and he held on like his life depended on it. His life _does_ depend on it. He explored every centimeter of Steve’s mouth, already looking forward to the many more times to come.

They pulled away moments later, Danny licking his lips, both of them grinning at each other like idiots.

“Not bad, superSEAL.” Danny teased.

All Steve could do was chuckle and shake his head.

Danny moved further into the bed, a small groan escaped his lips as pain shot up his spine.

“Whoa, whoa, Danny, don’t move.” Steve warned.

“I’m moving for you, you idiot.” Danny’s hand moved to cover his stab wound.

“I’m staying right here. You need the space.”

“Right, cause I can clearly move around freely.” Danny rolled his eyes.

“I might hurt you.” Steve warned.

“You’re hurting me by staying in that chair. It doesn’t look comfortable, and one of us in a hospital bed is enough. Seriously, I’m in pain for you.” Danny insisted.

“You sure?”

“I’m sure, I’m sure.” Danny patted the empty space now vacant next to him. “Besides, you look worse than I do.”

“You haven’t even seen yourself.” Steve defended, kicking off his shoes.

“Don’t have to.” Unable to sleep on either side, Danny gave Steve space to slip his arm around him, Steve’s hand on his shoulder. Danny rested his head on Steve’s chest and wrapped his arm around his partner’s waist. Danny took a deep breath from the nasal cannula oxygen supply.

“Am I hurting you?” Steve asked worriedly, tangling his fingers with Danny’s on his chest.

“I’m great, babe.” Danny promised.

Steve leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to Danny’s forehead. “Get some rest, I’ll be here when you wake up.”

 _Yes, you will be._ Danny thought.

Everything turned out all right. Danny was alive, and now, so was Steve.

**Author's Note:**

> Angsty as fuck, huh. I never intended on this being so long, I imagined 2-2.5k words but it just kept coming. I'm quite proud of it. As for the medical talk and what not, I've seen every single episode of ER and Grey's Anatomy, so I have the basics down. Also, if you noticed the Grey's reference, my hat's off to you. Anywho, I hope you enjoyed this one, and per usual, feedback would be greatly appreciated!


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